Year after year, the Social Security Administration receives more disability claims than it can possibly adjudicate in any kind of a timely manner. While the system is designed so that those who file a claim for Social Security Disability benefits will have their claims looked at in about three months, the reality is that it often takes much longer than that before the SSA actually renders a decision. And 70% of the time, that decision is a denial of benefits.
However, a denial is not the end of the road. There is a long, multiple-step appeals process that claimants can pursue, often resulting in an approved claim. The problem, again, is that this takes a long time. The average disability claim takes 18 months, and some claims take considerably longer before they are approved.
Unfortunately, this process is necessary for most people who make Social Security Disability claims. The guidelines for what is or is not considered a disability are very stringent, and proving that you are disabled enough that you cannot reasonably be expected to perform any kind of work that you have ever done before is the most important.
However, there are some conditions that automatically qualify someone for disability. In recognizing this, and the fact that people who are so obviously disabled should not have to wait to start receiving Social Security Disability benefits, the Social Security Administration started the Compassionate Allowances program in 2008.
Compassionate Allowances are a set of conditions that don’t require in depth examination or questioning, because the SSA considers them completely disabling by their very nature. These conditions consist mostly of rare diseases, terminal cancers, and progressive neurological diseases.
Kidney Cancer - inoperable or unresectable – Condition and Symptoms
As the name implies, kidney cancer is cancer that starts in the kidney tissue. Most victims are over 40 years old. While the cause of kidney cancer is not fully understood, it is believed that overuse of pain medications and smoking often increase the risk of contracting kidney cancer.
Inoperable kidney cancer is kidney cancer that, in the professional opinion of your doctor, cannot be successfully removed surgically. Your doctor uses a variety of imaging tests to determine whether or not it would possibly be beneficial to try to remove the tumor. Unresectable cancer, on the other hand, is a diagnosis in which your doctor attempted surgery but was not able to entirely remove the cancerous tumors. If your kidney cancer is either inoperable or unresectable, you are qualified for a Compassionate Allowance.
There are often no noticeable symptoms of kidney cancer in its early stages. However, as the tumor grows, common symptoms include: bloody urine, a persistent pain in the side, unexplained weight loss, anemia, and a lump in your abdomen.
Common treatment for kidney cancer includes removing part or all of the kidneys (this sometimes requires dialysis), kidney transplants, radiation therapy, biologic therapy, chemotherapy, and targeted therapy. Simply stated, doctors and patients do have a number of options to consider when treating kidney cancer and compared to other Compassionate Allowance approved cancers, the chance of survival is fairly good (largely due to the fact that you can live with only part of one working kidney, or even without one on dialysis).
Filing for Social Security Disability with Kidney Cancer - inoperable or unresectable
If you have kidney cancer, and your doctor has diagnosed it as unresectable or inoperable, you qualify for a Compassionate Allowance. Because you qualify for a Compassionate Allowance, the most important thing to do when filing for Social Security Disability benefits is to make sure that all of your paperwork and medical documentation is completely filled out.
When you have inoperable or unresectable kidney cancer, you should have no trouble being approved quickly for Social Security Disability benefits. In most cases, you will start receiving benefits within a month.
Your Kidney Cancer – inoperable or unresectable Social Security Disability Case
Even though you qualify for a Compassionate Allowance, and the Social Security Disability system is designed to work you in quickly, the safest way to make sure that your claim goes through without a hitch is to have a Social Security Disability lawyer review your case to make sure everything is in proper order.
A SSD advocate or lawyer, more than anyone else (including your doctor) will know what the SSA is looking for on your claims and medical forms. They can help make sure everything is phrased just right to ensure that your claim goes immediately into the Compassionate Allowance program, where it belongs.
It’s easy to have a Social Security Disability attorney review your case with you. All you need to do is fill out the attached request for a free evaluation.
